Full disclosure: This astounding performance by Josh Weathers of Dolly Parton's I Will Always Love You, sung with all the vocal reach and dexterity of the late Whitney Houston, did not originally take place this month. But the discovery of the video of it did.He tells a lively back story (be patient and listen) about how it came to pass that he learned and memorized the song, with all of its octaval gymnastics, as he sips whiskey before beginning to give it a go. (I commend him for not … [Read more...]

Irish poet, Seamus Heaney -- esteemed, brilliant, humble, plaintive and true -- crossed o`er the hoary sea today. He died at 74 in Dublin after a brief illness. He was known for many poems; he won the Noble prize in literature and has been globally recognized as Ireland’s greatest poet since William Butler Yeats.Michael Longley, a Belfast poet and close friend of Heaney, recalled chatting with Heaney over whiskey and beer earlier this month at a western Irish literary festival: "He was a w … [Read more...]

The first and foremost reason that I support Edward Snowden is that I have lost faith in all others who demonize him. In this regard I think primarily of our government, but not exclusively. Time and again those who claim to be "looking out for us" (meaning, us citizens) have been shown to be liars and manipulators. In that regard I continue to be shocked by the collective shrug this has elicited on the part of the general population. I have written elsewhere about how our (and Snowden's) … [Read more...]

People will judge you, of course. That is my point. Determine in your heart and mind, ahead of time, how this will affect you. Depending upon your moment in life and the circumstances in which you find yourself, others will always take liberties with opinions and conclusions about your situation, your efforts, stratagems, applied logic or whatever else. It is good if you possess the ability to thank them. It is better if, after thanking them, you think about what they have said and … [Read more...]

Clare of Assisi died 760 years ago tomorrow (August 11, 1253). Yet she remains as much a beacon for women and men of faith today as she did in her own day. For centuries the story of Clare has been interpreted through the life of Saint Francis of Assisi (1182-1226), the one-time playboy who was destined to become Catholicism’s most popular saint.Yet her indomitable faith complements that of her guide and truest love, St. Francis, whom I wrote about in my book A Mended and Broken Heart: The L … [Read more...]

Poor Anthony Weiner. He can't seem to help himself. The struggling NYC mayoral candidate has yet to surmount the recent revelations of his ongoing email exchanges and related photos (sexts) with a 22-year-old woman. This behavior proved to be vexingly persistent, even after the former congressman was forced to resign because of sexting scandals in June 2011 and assured the public that the behavior was behind him.His most recent misstep was his unceremonious dismissal of a fellow mayoral c … [Read more...]

Julian Assange said in a recent interview (below) that the state of extreme surveillance has become the new religion in the U.S.Oxford Dictionary defines religion: noun [mass noun]: the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods, such as: "ideas about the relationship between science and religion"; [as a count noun] a particular system of faith and worship: the world’s great religions; a pursuit or interest followed with great devotion, such as … [Read more...]